Monday, 23 February 2015

CHILDREN'S Minister James Reilly has said it is not appropriate for legal firm Arthur Cox to represent tobacco firms and state agencies.

Dr Reilly is currently reviewing the relationship between the State's child and family agency Tulsa and the firm of solicitors representing Japan Tobacco International (JTI), which is threatening legal action against the Government if it introduces plain packaging for cigarettes.

"I fail to see how we send the right message by employing legal firms that are prepared to represent the tobacco industry, whose history in this area is quite appalling, to be quite frank.

"Their inability to come out and tell the truth time after time has been quite shocking ..."

Dr Reilly called on all legal firms to come out and say they would not represent tobacco interests.

This is an astounding thing for any politician to say, it's like lessons of history have completely passed him by.

To even suggest that a perfectly legitimate, taxpaying industry should be denied any and all legal representation by order of the state - and simply because it disagrees with the state - is the very definition of fascism. But to do so by way of implied threats that legal firms will be excluded from government contracts if they include tobacco companies as their clients just makes it even more disgusting.

This is the evil place that tobacco control and its hideous acolytes inhabit. They go through their self-enriching lives viewing everything through the prism of hatred of tobacco, while not recognising the potentially disastrous precedents they are setting. Blacklisting lawyers for representing companies exercising their right - in a supposedly civilised free country - to hold politicians to account through the impartial legal system surely has to be a new low.

This is why I despise tobacco controllers. If they were decent people they'd condemn this fundamental abuse of our long-held adherence to democracy and justice, but they won't. They'll just allow Reilly - who also despises e-cigs remember - and his fascist Trojan Horse to go unchallenged.

11 comments:

Tom Gleeson
said...

In fairness Reilly's party, f.g. (known as blue shirts) have history. Leopard and spots. Accusing him of being fascist is a bit close to the bone. Deluded loon in desperate atempt to rescue failing career is more accurate.

Didn’t Reilly get a big, big demotion in a recent re-shuffle in the Irish Government? Wasn’t that hoped to shut the buffoon up and put him firmly back in his box? Maybe another demotion is called for. Perhaps to something lowly but re-named – like “floor hygiene technician” or something …

Reilly is living proof that intelligence and human decency are not requirements to practice medicine. Many medics do possess those qualities but some are ignorant arrogant unpleasant individuals with Fascist tendencies. It is unfortunate that press and politicians do not appear to recognise this.

'We are not for turning. We will never allow the profits of international companies and multinationals from wherever they come to be at thecost of the health of our citizens and particularly the cost of the health ofour children.'

1) Who profits from tobacco the most, by far at c.80%?

2) Why hasn't this lardarse and pals, who have power and influence,used the legal process to ban tobacco outright? (See 1).

3) If he's that sure about the damage, why not divert ALL of tobaccoreceipts directly into the health service without making a reduction elsewhere?At least it would partly justify the high cost in the eyes of many smokers. Thetruth is that the Irish economy, like so many others, needs smokers (see 1& 2).